Rock bottom
by SeaShellSakura
Summary: she knew she was going to hit rock bottom soon. and yet, she couldn't bring herself to care. what might have happened if a certain kitsune avails himself of a captain's position.
1. Boring days and Remembering

A/N:Hey guys!

well, this is my first story of any kind and i seriously love this pairing.

i noticed it has never been done before and thought, well, why not?

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Chapter 1 : Boring days and Remembering

Rukia Kuchiki stretched and yawned. Then she rolled out of bed and walked rather groggily to the bathroom. A warm shower later, however, she was feeling much better. She changed back into her shihakusho and tied the 13th squad lieutenant's badge around her arm, before making her way to the family room for breakfast.

_Today is not going to be much different, _she thought, sliding open the shoji door and bowed slightly, finding her brother already there. "Nii-sama," she murmured, before making her way to her place at his side.

The breakfast passed as usual, Byakuya not deigning to speak and Rukia following suit. Rukia soon found her mind drifting. Meeting Ichigo Kurosaki. Giving him her powers. Her almost-execution. Aizen's betrayal. Sode no shirayuki breaking. Aizen's defeat and imprisonment. Ichigo losing and then regaining his powers.

Well, all that was over, thank you very much. There would probably be no mystery, no excitement in her life. She wasn't complaining, only after all that mayhem, life would most likely be a little dull.

"Rukia," her brother calling her name pulled her back to the present.

"Yes, Nii-sama?"

"It is time to leave."

"Hai, Nii-sama."

Now was not the time to mourn. Every one needed some peace and quiet, damn it! And she could finally kick back a little.

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Rukia quickly flash stepped over to her office. Captain Ukitake was already there, sipping his herbal tea.

"Good morning, Rukia." He said, glancing up at her. The violet-eyed girl in turn allowed a big smile to grace her face, as she bowed happily to her captain.

"Good morning, captain," she replied enthusiastically, grinning before scratching the back of her head sheepishly. "Uh, I'd better start on my paperwork, captain. There is an awful lot of it."

Jushirou Ukitake smiled fondly at her as he nodded.

Sitting down at her desk, she had just picked up her brush and dipped it in the ink when two beautiful black butterflies fluttered through the door, one landing on an outstretched finger of captain and subordinate.

As the message flowed through her mind Rukia frowned. A Captain _and_ Lieutenants' meeting? Now?

She looked questioningly at her captain, then walked over to him to help the sickly man get up.

"Come on, Captain, let's see what the Supreme Commander wants of us."

"Thank you, Rukia," Ukitake smiled at her, green eyes sparkling. "Yes, let's go."

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Yamamoto Genrusai looked on as his various captains and lieutenants filed into the meeting room, each taking their positions on his left and right.

"Silence!" he intoned, smiling inside when all of them almost automatically snapped to attention.

"You must be wondering why you are here today," he began. Many faces turned to him, some with obvious curiosity, others a careful mask of respect.

"I wish to inform you than a line of very powerful spirits has been discovered in the Seretei. Their power, I have been informed, rivals even the four noble houses." Collective gasps. "We have made contact with them, and have arranged a meeting at their mansion on this day. They have also consented for all our captain and lieutenants to come as well and perhaps understand why they have hidden themselves away, as our sensors now show that their energy signatures have been present for at least a few centuries." More gasps. Yamamoto enjoyed being surprising, but this information had annoyed him too. Internally he sighed. "Unfortunately, we were unable to get so much as a _name." _Another internal sigh.

"So, I request all of you to accompany me and my lieutenant to this place, _immediately._ You are dismissed."

Yamamoto watched as his captains and their lieutenants left, before frowning to himself.

Just who _were_ these people?

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Shippou leaned back and stretched out against a tree. Those shinigami were coming today. Sesshomaru-sama had mentioned as much.

'_Gods of death', huh? _

His mind drifted. He seriously missed Kagome. He hadn't seen his adopted mother for centuries, and his other family: Sango and Miroku and Inuyasha. Kaede, Kohaku, even Rin.

"But I'll find them. I promised both myself and them." And he _never_ broke his promises. Even if the sky fell down, he was going to find them and _keep_ them this time.

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WELL, THERE'S CHAPTER 1!

I'm rather slow at updating, due to a lack of imagination. please bear with me.

anyway, please review!

see u guys next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Next chappie! Hope you like it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo xox

Chapter 2 – New Meetings

The shinigami had entrusted their paperwork to their respective workers and had just gathered, waiting for the Supreme Commander to arrive. Captain Zaraki and his lieutenant were out on a mission and wouldn't be coming, though.

"Soooo, where do you think we're going?" Rangiku Matsumoto, sober for once, asked excitedly, almost bouncing over to where Rukia and Renji were on the verge of yelling at each other again.

They turned to her, Rukia frowning. "I don't know, even the Supreme Commander didn't seem too sure, you know. I wonder who these people are. They must be pretty powerful to be hidden for so long."

"That's what I was thinking."

"Can you even think straight with all the alcohol you put in your system, Matsumoto?" Renji asked, sarcastically.

"You can't even cast a proper hado!"

Rukia turned away from her bickering friends, her mind already wandering. _Those people should not only be powerful, they must be very skilled to hide their signature so well. I wonder just what they are capable of. If they ARE as powerful as they seem to be, we had better not get off…what was that Ichigo says?...on the wrong foot._

"Silence!" a booming voice announced.

The Supreme Commander had arrived.

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A few hours, and several hundred flash steps later, the supreme commander, and all the captains and lieutenants following him stopped at the border of, what seemed to be, rather a thick forest.

"There is a barrier here," the supreme commander said, raising his hand. He seemed slightly surprised. Rukia's eyes widened, as did those of several others. They could neither sense nor see the barrier!

_What is this? _Rukia thought, eyes narrowing at the place the commander stood.

Suddenly, the commander unsheathed his zanpakuto, and slashed it upwards. There was a flash of yellow and he was forced back almost a meter. A black and white blur falling from the sky caught their attention.

"Who are you, to dare trespass on my lord's lands?" a hostile voice hissed.

A beautiful young woman with a purple sceptre in her hands was rising gracefully where she'd landed, on one knee. Long platinum hair with a lilac tint held up in a ponytail with a jewelled clip easily fell past her hip and violet eyes a few shades lighter than Rukia's were narrowed in a glare at the Supreme Commander. She was dressed in a dark violet and blue fighting kimono, fingerless black and silver leather gloves on her slender hands, each finger tipped with razor sharp claws. A pendant of a midnight blue crescent moon dangled from her lean neck. Her sceptre was held easily, and could obviously do rather a lot of damage. But what surprised them the most were the long and sharp canines that were bared slightly at them in a silent snarl and the large, black _bat _wings sprouting from her back, which had been outstretched when she landed, and now, had folded back.

"We are the shinigami. I believe your lord agreed to meet us today," the supreme commander's words jerked everyone out of their staring daze.

The woman's eyes narrowed further, and her gaze flickered over them, silently assessing.

"I believe so," she answered, eyes returning to the supreme commander and a slight smile flickering across her face. Her eyes however remained slightly wary. "My lord told us of your imminent arrival," she said "however, I request you not to attempt to break my barrier. The effects of a future attempt will probably be a lot more…painful." She bowed very slightly, "and I apologize for my hostility. I am Shiori. Please, follow me."

She turned and began to walk into the forest. She obviously expected them to follow, which they did. "I must warn you though, even though you hold no ill intentions towards my lord or anything or person within this compound, any subsequent ill intentions will be severely punished. My barrier, keeps out all unknown, and all known with any evil intentions, and this holds true within my barrier as well."

Most of the shinigami were looking around nervously, and shivered slightly at the various howls, growls and other spooky sounds echoing throughout the forest.

"Ah, excuse me, Shiori-san," captain Ukitake said nervously; the young woman was obviously dangerous "may I ask you a question?"

"Hmm?" Shiori glanced back, giving him a slight smile.

"Why are there so many sounds in this forest? There are obviously many rather dangerous…um…_things_ in this forest, yet you walk through it so freely. How?"

"Oh, um, everything in this forest, apart from family, friends and guests, of course, is game. We hunt when we have nothing else to do. And every _animal_ in this forest is terrified of us. Every now and then, one becomes hungry enough to attack us, though. Like now."

There was a loud crashing sound coming in their direction. All heads swung to the left, listening and waiting. Most of them were expecting a hollow, what with the roars and snarls. But what came out surprised them.

It looked like a red bull with rabies. That was the easiest way of describing it. A reddish orange bull, with blood red eyes came charging at them, froth from its mouth burning holes in the grass. Almost everyone jumped back in astonishment rather than alarm, but Shiori stepped forward.

Her hand disappeared up her sleeve and a second later, several kunai were sticking out of its chest, wounds pouring blood. A second later, Shiori was behind it, wings outstretched and an enormous, intricately carved scythe in her hand. She cut downwards, and the bull's head rolled on the floor.

She landed lightly and flicked the blood off her scythe, hissing slightly when a drop of blood landed on her kimono.

"I guess I shall have to change my kimono now," she sighed, looking down at the bull and, eyes hardening, she seemed to speak to it "but at the best of times, it is suicide to fight a Taisho." She sighed again, "And I'll have to ask Shippou to clean up this mess." Her scythe glowed slightly, then shrunk back into the sceptre she held earlier.

A few minutes later, the forest opened out into a large grassy plain, and they saw the mansion for the first time. It caused the drop of several jaws.

The mansion was enormous. It was Japanese styled, but at least five times the size of any normal house. Large _sakura_ trees grew around, all in full bloom, giving a wild feel to the garden, complementing the darkness of the forest. As they walked closer, they noticed a _very large_ person bending over an equally large herb garden dotted with flowers. As they neared, he straightened up and glanced behind him. A wide smile broke over his face and they noticed a faint blush dusting Shiori's cheeks.

"Shiori-chan! You're back! Oh, sorry, hello." He bowed, then turned back to Shiori. "After you leave them with him, could you help me, please? Those herbs I planted last year are ready to pick!" he seemed very excited about it.

"Of course, Jinjei-kun. I'll probably be back in half an hour." She answered, eyes glowing slightly.

"Thanks!"

He happily turned back to his work, leaving them to continue.

She led them to one of the trees, then yelled up into the branches, "Shippou, wake up!"

"I was awake, damn it! And I knew you were here!" a man dressed in a blue kimono dotted with leaves and decorated with two strips of fur leapt gracefully from the tree, before being almost completely hidden in the blooms.

He was remarkably handsome, with hair the colour of fire tied up with a blue ribbon, long bangs falling into brilliantly sparkling green eyes. His fingers were also tipped with sharp claws, though his were longer and sharper than Shiori's. A large, bushy fox tail curled sensually around his legs, the end twitching occasionally as he brushed the petals off him.

"Sesshomaru-sama wanted you to be there too. Where were you?" Shiori asked, sounding irritated. "I was looking everywhere for you!"

"Don't blame me! Kouga and Ayame started fighting again, and Ginta and Hakkaku were sparring and refused to help me to pull them apart before they killed each other!" he said, waving his arms around to make his point, "I had to tie them up. Than was half an hour ago. You can _still_ hear them! I wish they'd shut up." He added, sighing.

"So _that's _what I've been hearing for the past half hour." She said, nodding thoughtfully.

"Yup!" he nodded too, then seemed to notice the shinigami behind her. A hand reached up to scratch the back of his head embarrassedly.

"I'm sorry. I'm Shippou. It is wonderful to meet you." He bowed his smile showing he meant it. His gaze lingered a little longer on Rukia than the others.

"Mew?"

"There you are! Can't you stay in one place for more than a second?! I was following your scent all morning! I'm not a tracker!" he snatched up a cream coloured cat with black stripes on its legs and _two _tails, and bright vermillion eyes from the ground.

"Mew,"

"Idiot."

An indignant 'mew' was the reply. He ignored the cat, making her scratch his cheek in retaliation, leaving deep cuts. He merely hissed and glared at the cat, while the cuts began to close quickly.

"Excuse me, Shippou- san. How do you heal so fast, and without any kind of healing?" of course Captain Unohana would ask.

"We are not _human, _Captain. We heal much faster than the average human or soul. Even people like Shiori and Jinjei here, who are halfs, heal fast, though slower than us. What might take a day to heal for us, takes about twice as long for them."

"So, if you are not human souls," Rukia asked, "what _are _you?"

He gave her a secretive smile. "_That_ is not for me to tell you. Sesshomaru-sama probably will. He's a hard nut to crack though. You might not get anything out of the dog."

"Comparing him to a nut. Is there a better way of ensuring your death?" Shiori muttered, rubbing the bridge of her nose, "No, don't answer that."

"Well, let's go. We absolutely _do not_ want a mad Sesshomaru-sama on our hands." He shivered. "That would be _terrifying._ He's scary enough when he's not angry."

A chuckle rumbled out of the mansion.

Shippou and Shiori blinked, looked at each other and blinked again.

"Did I just hear what I thought I heard? Did the Killing Perfection _actually laugh?!" _Shippou almost squeaked, looking shaken, "remember what happened last time? I couldn't get that picture out of my head for months!"

"I-I know," Shiori answered "it is unlike him in every way. I guess he was listening in."

"Isn't he always?"

She snorted, then turned back to the confused shinigami.

"Would you follow us, please?" she turned, and began to walk in the direction of the house, Shippou sending them an encouraging smile before catching up with her.

They walked in silence, all the shinigami looking around in awe. They entered the house, and walked down rather a long hallway before they stopped at a shoji door. Shiori knelt, and slid open the door.

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Hope you liked it! Sorry about the late update!

Anyways, please review!


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